If you’d been looking forward to playing Aloft this year during its previously announced fall early access, we’re sorry to inform you that this is not happening after all. The game’s early access has officially been delayed until January 2025, so fans will have to wait a little bit longer to play the game. Meanwhile, you can take a gander at the odd-but-charming Spire Horizon Online if you have ever wanted to play a skeleton trying to rescue a capybara – and you may have never wanted that before, but now that you’ve heard about it, don’t you really want to?
Meanwhile, Nightingale has opened up its public test server for players through Monday so you can try out the game’s next update ahead of it going live. Temtem Swarm has also announced that it’s launching into early access on November 13th, so players can look forward to swarming the field with monsters that could potentially fit in their pockets but may not. Don’t quote me on that one.
In summary, early access is a land of contrasts. You can even see more stories about early access and about other betas just below, and as always we have our full list of games in testing down below. If you notice something has slipped into a new test phase without us noticing or is missing from the list? Let us know in the comments! We always appreciate it.
Star Citizen devs report drying funds, micromanagement, overspending, and episodic release for Squadron 42
Dune Awakening answers questions about PvP, console release plans, and a melee combat revamp
Ashes of Creation’s Steven Sharif talks Alpha 2 features, the MMO’s design, and ‘the bite of failure’ in PvX
MMO Hype Train: Concern for the fragile labor and delivery of Pantheon
Pax Dei confirms its next big update, Proving Grounds, will arrive on November 5 – alongside server merges
Stars Reach is testing its very Star Wars Galaxies-esque ranger skill tree and combat in this weekend’s playtest
Wayfinder previews The Crucible zone and teases its eighth hero ahead of October 21 launch
NetEase officially announces mobile FPS Destiny Rising, with closed alpha starting November 1
Jagex’s RuneScape survival spin-off resurfaces asking for closed alpha testers
Ghibli-esque co-op sandbox Aloft delays early access from fall to January 2025
Pantheon Rise of the Fallen maps out its path to early access, now targeting the winter holiday season
Valheim brings the Bog Witch update to its public test server
MapleStory Worlds makes its soft launch as it tries to entice creators with monetary incentive programs
The Stream Team: Checking out the demo of the oddball MMORPG Spire Horizon Online
Ammo and Oxygen, the Wild Terra studio’s new sci-fi roguelike shooter, heads to early access November 7
Cozy MMO Palia is letting us trade plushies in next week’s Fall’s Flourishes update
We consider an MMO to be in open testing if it features free, public signups and will server wipe prior to launch. An MMO is marked in closed testing if it’s running a private test phase that cannot freely be accessed by the general public; it’s often under NDA as well. Early access and crowdfunded MMOs whose tests we deem legitimate will be included. So-called “open beta” soft-launch MMOs with cash shops, no sign of launch in the west, or limited interest for our readers will not be listed, nor will games that are NFT/blockchain scams; we also do not list expansions, with occasional exceptions. Finally, we’ll mark games “malingering” if they’ve been in a certain tier of development for a long time with no clear path to launch.
Open testing
Closed testing
Paid access
Legit MMORPG
Multiplayer
Malingering33 Immortals: Closed testing
Abyss: Early access
The Adventurer’s Domain Online: Early access
Aero Tales Online: Early access
Age of Water: Early access
Aloft: Early access in January 2025
Ammo and Oxygen: Early access starts November 7th
Anvil Empires: Intermittent alpha
Arcane Waters: Early access
Arc Raiders: Launch in 2025, tech beta signups for October
Arcfall: Pre-alpha
ARK 2: Paid early access
Ascendant: Open testing in August
Ashes of Creation: Alpha two in planning
Ashfall: Closed beta
ASKA: Early access
Battlebit: Early access
Battle Crush: Early access
Bellatores: Closed testing
Bellwright: Early access, developers of abandoned Last Oasis
Bitcraft: Alpha 2 on June 17th, 2024
Blue Protocol Mobile: Closed beta in China, full game is shutting down
Book of Travels: Early access
Brighter Shores: Closed beta on October 22nd, November release planned
Camelot Unchained: Closed beta, planning to launch in late 2025
Chronicles of Elyria: Pre-alpha, again
Chrono Odyssey: Closed testing, plans for 2025
Cinderstone Online: Closed beta
City of Titans: Alpha
Coreborn: Nations of the Ultracore: Early access
Corepunk: Fourth alpha, early access planned for November 26th
Craftopia: Early access
The Crew Motorfest: Closed testing
Dark and Darker: Paid early access, legal troubles.
Dark and Light: Early access (abandoned?)
Darkbind: Closed beta (probably abandoned?)
Dawn of Defiance: Early access
Destiny Rising: Closed alpha starts November 1st
Dreamworld: Pre-alpha, transitioning to Steam on October 10th
Dune Awakening: Closed testing, signups now
Dungeonborne>: Early access
ECO: Early access, full launch planned in 2024
Eleven: Closed alpha
Enshrouded: Early access
Eternal Tombs: Pre-alpha resumes October 11th
EVE Vanguard: Early access planned post-November
Evercore Heroes: Paid testing, updates stopping with a focus on a redesign
EverCraft Online: Weekend-long open test starts April 19th
Final Stand: Ragnarok: Early access (officially, really)
Fellowship: Closed testing on August 15th
FragPunk: Closed alpha
Frozen Flame: Early access
Havenhold: Second alpha June 20th
Homestead: Open alpha
Ilysia: Early access
Inferna: Early access
Kurtzpel: Closed beta
Legend of Ares: Open testing ahead of relaunch
Legendarium Online: Paid alpha access
Lost Skies: Pre-alpha
Marvel Rivals: Closed alpha
Mecha Break: Open beta concluded, launching 2025
Midnight Murder Club: Closed testing this weekend
Monsters & Memories: Intermittent pre-alpha
Mortal Exodus: Closed testing
Necesse: Early access
Nightingale: Early access
Odd Giants: Alpha
Osiris: New Dawn: Back from the dead, not on Steam any longer
Outlaws of the Old West: Early access
Palia: Open beta
Palworld: Early access
Pantheon: Backer alpha, early access planned for December
Past Fate: Closed testing
Path of Exile 2: Early access November 15th
Pax Dei: Early access
Perfect New World: Closed beta
Pow Vista: Open beta (mobile)
Project Crawl: Closed testing
Project F4E: Closed testing
Project Friendship: Beta signups open now
Project Genom: Closed alpha (servers offline, abandoned?)
Project Gorgon: Early access beta
Project Loki: Closed beta
Project ST: Closed testing, open event ended
Prosperous Universe: Early access
Quinfall: Third closed beta has ended
Return Alive: Closed beta
Reign of Guilds: Early access
Rodent Rumble: Launching next year, playtest on October 11th
SamuTale: “Paid closed alpha early access” according to the developer, which is just early access, come on dude
Scars of Honor: Next test October 26th
Seed: In pre-release, test run starts October 24th
Seekers of Skyveil: Continuing alpha testing, closed beta in September
Ship of Heroes: Beta testing
Ships at Sea: Early access
Sky: Children of Light: Open early access
Smite 2: 24/7 closed alpha for paying members
Soulframe: “Pre-pre-pre-pre-alpha” testing wrapped up
The Spell Brigade: Early access
Spellfarers: Early access
Star Citizen: Backer alpha
Starbase: Early access open alpha
Stars Reach: Pre-alpha started
Temtem Swarm: Closed beta
Tombstone: Closed testing, release planned for this year
Tribes 3: Rivals: Early access, development slowing/stopping
Trimurti Online: Stress testing, open beta February 13th
Valheim: Early access
Valiance Online: Closed beta
Vindictus: Defying Fate: Open testing
WalkScape: Closed beta until June 15th
Waven Early access
We welcome additions and corrections to this list; send your info our way via tips!
Yes, MMO gamers, you too can perform the unpaid quality-control work otherwise known as game testing! Check out Massively Overpowered’s Betawatch every week for a run-down of MMOs that are still on the road to launch, even if they appear to have set up a permanent residence in a shed called early access.
